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Wednesday, October 01, 2025

Calculator Codes: Texting Before Text Messages Was A Thing

Imagine a world where your cell phone couldn't send an SMS text message, or even before cell phones were commonplace. Between the late 1980's and early 2000's, the only way most people could contact someone immediately (when the phone be couldn't be picked up) was via a pager (or beeper).

These devices didn't receive "texts" as we know them. They received short, one-way notifications called pages. The most common type was the numeric page, which meant you could only send messages made up of numbers, usually by typing them on a landline phone's keypad. This was before the term "landline phone" was used to differentiate between a cell phone and the phone attached to physical wire.

This limitation forced early users to get incredibly creative, inventing codes to communicate. The Calculator Code was one of the original and simplest solutions, a trick that turned those basic numbers into readable words.

What is the Calculator Method?

The trick relies on the physical display of early digital devices. Both pocket calculators and basic pagers used a segmented display where numbers are formed by showing specific bars of light or contrast. For example, the number 8 was formed by showing all seven segments (top horizontal, upper right vertical, upper left vertical, middle horizontal, lower left vertical and lower right vertical).

By entering certain numbers, the received page could be read by flipping the device upside down. Those number shapes visually resemble certain letters. This allowed users to send words like "HELLO" (07734) or a quick note like "BEE" (338).

Why This Method was Very Limited

Because the Calculator Method depended on the physical shape of the numbers as they appeared upside down, only a handful of letters could be clearly formed. If a number didn't have a clear upside-down equivalent, it couldn't be used.

Here are the only letters that were considered authentic and unambiguous within the Calculator Code set:

The Complete Calculator Code Key (The Nine Letters)

If a letter is not on this list, it was encoded using the true Calculator Method.
Number	Letter	How it looks (Flipped)
0	O, D	Looks like O or D
1	I	Looks like I
2	Z	Looks like Z
3	E	Looks like E
4	h	Looks like h (lowercase)
5	S	Looks like S
6	g	Looks like g (lowercase)
7	L	Looks like L
8	B	Looks like B
9	G	Looks like G
Note on Ambiguity: The letters B and G are often confused with the numbers 8 and 9 respectively, as the digital display varied between calculators.

Ready for Full Messages?

The Calculator Code is fun, but to send a full message that requires the entire alphabet (A-Z) on a pager, users had to switch to more advanced methods:

Look Alike Cipher: This is the full $26$ -letter system that uses visual tricks for every letter. It became a dominant method for long and complex words. [See the Full Pager Code Key]
Beeper Codes: Need a super-fast message? These are simple, standardized three-digit messages used as quick status updates (e.g., 143 for "I love you"). [View the Beeper Code Dictionary]

Get Messaging, Encode Your Own Messages Now!

Want to generate your own full message using the Look Alike method right now? [ → Use Our Live Pager Code Encoder Tool Here ← ]

Numeric Pager Code Encoder Tool (Look Alike Cipher)

For more information on the history of Pager, Beeper and Calculator Codes:

Look Alike Cipher: This is the full $26$ -letter system that uses visual tricks with numbers for every letter. It became a dominant method for long, complex messages sent to pagers, called "pages" (1990's version of texting). [See the Full Pager Code Key]
Beeper Codes: Need a super-fast message? These are simple, standardized three-digit messages used as quick status updates (e.g., 143 for "I love you"). [View the Beeper Code Dictionary]
Calculator Method: Possibly the original code for pagers, limited but still useful, and meant to be read upside down (e.g., 07734 for "hELLO") [See the Calculator Method]

Thursday, September 04, 2025

The Luddites Among Us!

Back in the late 1700's and early 1800's in England, there was this legend of a man named Ned Ludd. He became the folk hero of workers who were smashing textile machines because those machines supposedly threatened their jobs due to automation. These workers called themselves Luddites and saw their actions as a fight for survival, not just being grumpy about technology.

Being so far removed from those events now, the term Luddite still persists. However, its meaning morphed into a somewhat pejorative term that identifies someone who is opposed to new technology or ways of working.^[1]

The word Luddite has been used to coin more terms, such as luddism, neo-luddite, neo-luddism and luddic (as in the gaming faction called Luddic Church). But, this is an interesting word that deserves a full backform, complete with adjectives, adverbs, verbs and more nouns! These will serve a new purpose in an era when AI is changing the world in a manner that is faster than many are ready. Sure, we have the term technophobia, but that's more about fear of technology rather than being opposed to it.

As the Information Age ramps up with the new AI Boom, let's use these new terms to describe how we interact with technology (assuming we narrow the definition of Luddite to mean someone that is identified as a ludd). This list isn't in alphabetic order to encourage amused perusal.

ludd (noun) – a person, action or mindset that resists change resulting from technological progress. Backformation of Luddite.

Example: "The office was full of ludds who avoided the new software."

ludd (verb) – to resist or sabotage change resulting from technological progress. Backformation of Luddite.

Example: "He ludds every software update."

luddish (adj.; informal) – having qualities that are reminiscent of ludd, such as being passively resistant to change that results from progress of technology. Similar to word-forms such as reddish and childish.

Example: "He gave a luddish groan when I suggested using AI for his project."

luddical (adj.; formal) – Exhibiting the characteristics of a ludd, such as actively resisting changes from technological progress. Resembles fanatical and heretical.

Example: "The committee’s luddical stance slowed adoption of new tools."

luddicity (noun) – the quality of being ludd. Similar to word-forms such as electricity and historicity.

Example: "Their luddicity is slowing down our adoption of AI."

luddbomb (verb) – to take away one's phone or other device, typically as a form of punishment.

Example: "I can't text you later because my parents luddbombed me for being out past curfew last night."

deludd (verb) – to remove resistance to use of technology or technological progress. Resembles demote and defund.

Example: "We'll have to deludd our processes to allow for the use of AI in tasks.

luddophobic (noun) – one who is irrationally fearful of ludds, Luddites or of being a ludd. Similar to word-forms such as hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia and aibohphobia.

Example: "He was accused of being luddophobic."

luddly (adv.) – In a manner that is characteristic of ludd; acting with resistance to changes resulting from technological progress. Resembles actively and warmly.

Example: "She luddly ignored the update, preferring her old methods."

ludditely (adv.) – In a Luddite manner. Similar to word-forms such as heretically and ironically.

Example: "They ludditely jumped to conclusions about effectiveness of AI."

luddful (adj.) – Full of or characterized by luddical behavior or characteristics; actively inclined to oppose technological progress. Resembles prideful and masterful.

Example: "The luddful staffers are trying to rebel against our most recent process improvements."

inludd (verb) – to actively insert or introduce luddical resistance into a system, situation or process. Similar to word-forms such as inculcate and infuse.

Example: "They inludded the workflow by banning cloud-based tools."

luddify (verb) – to make something old-fashioned or resistant to technological progress. Resembling nullify and electrify.

Example: "My parents are trying to luddify our home after the recent wifi controversy."

emludd (verb) – to immerse a system, environment or group with luddical behavior or characteristics. Similar to word-forms such as empower and embody.

Example: "The manager emludded the office by banning digital tools."

imludd (verb) – to become luddical or adopt luddicity. Resembles imbue and immolate.

Example: "She will imludd her use of new apps on her phone."

antiludd (noun) – a person, action or attitude that promotes or supports technological progress; opposes luddical behaviors or characteristics. Similar to word-forms such as antithesis and antifreeze.

Example: "I will become the office's antiludd in order to force the use of new technology for much needed process improvement."

antiludd (verb) – to act in a way that counters luddical behaviors or characteristics; to promote modernization or technological adoption. Resembles antihack and antagonize.

Example: "Have we been antiludding the office on pace with corporate requirements?"

ludd out (verb) – aggressively removing particular forms of technology from one's life or environment. Similar to word phrases such as deck out and all out.

Example, "He ludded out his home to avoid the government from reading his mind while he sleeps."

luddment (noun) – an instance, example or individual that embodies luddical behaviors or characteristics. Remembles achievement and settlement.

Example: "The luddment within the department was a clear obstacle to adopting new tools."

luddology (noun) – the study or application of outdated or old-fashioned processes and technologies, often ironically or nostalgically. Similar word-form to technology and anthology.